Category history

Bottle Trees Return to Brattle Street, Connecting Past and Present in Many Ways

Noting that this meaningful installation ends on February 28, I’m posting now without trying for photos that truly convey the beauty and significance of blue bottle trees! I’ll hope the photos, quotes, and links here will guide you to visit in person if possible or at least appreciate the art, history, goals, and collaborative work on the lawn of 159 Brattle Street.

Boundless Promise in “Unbound,” Sculpture by Harmonia Rosales on Boston’s Freedom Trail

“Unbound” was unveiled outside King’s Chapel on Tremont Street in mid-September, but my first visit was late December. Today my goal is to share photos, links and quotes that lead you there, in person if possible. Soon I hope to learn enough to post a worthy sequel.

Sense the Presence of Dramatic Sculpture by Wesley Wofford: “Hope Out of Darkness”

With only the rest of December left to view this monumental sculpture on the Greenway, I want to post now, without waiting for better photos from my phone. If you can get to Boston’s waterfront this month, don’t miss the experience of getting as close as possible to this inspiring being! If not, you can enjoy the compelling photos and information in Public Art at the Greenway website, plus other Key Resources listed below. I hope the quotes here will guide you.

Costumes Add to the Energy of ‘No Kings’ Event on Boston Common, October 18

Across the vast vista of people on that bright October day, a great variety of signs and colorful costumes heightened my hopes throughout the rally. Here are a few photos of many engaging characters who enlivened the event. For photos of some selected statements, visit updates on Signs of the Times. For context, data, and dramatic photos, explore links in KEY RESOURCES.

Arts Enhance Action in Boston Labor Day Parade, 2025

Costumes, displays, banners, posters, music and dance relate to the theme: Workers over Billionaires!

Glad to be there and then go through many photos. Here are a few examples of statements people made in different ways.

Signs and Connections Grow on Cambridge Common throughout Festival Organized by MASS 50501

Here are photos, quotes, links, and notes from a recent MASS 50501 event that truly engaged me in sustaining ways. Visual art, along with music, poetry, free food, volunteer energy, careful organizing, and good weather, made this a fruitful festival.

Good Signs at Good Trouble Rally on Boston Common across from the State House

This Boston rally, July 17, in memory of John Lewis, drew on many ways to make good trouble: posters, stencils, bubbles, costumes, singing, speaking, signing, dancing, chanting, painting, and much more. Let photos and quotes here suggest the event’s energy and emotions.

Boston Women’s Memorial Resounds with Past and Present Voices

 Boston Women’s Heritage Trail (BWHT) alerted me to a resonant event, Women and the Fourth at the Boston Women’s Memorial on Commonwealth Avenue. Joining Meredith Bergmann’s sculptures of Phillis Wheatley, Abigail Adams, and Lucy Stone, Executive Director Dr. Alexandria Russell read aloud from Frederick Douglass’s powerful 1852 speech, What To the Slave Is the 4th of July?

Art Ramble in Brister’s Hill, Walden Woods, Weaving an Address, sequel: Curator Talk by Marla McLeod Opens Eyes to Art on the Ground and among the Branches

On May 25, a wondrously worthwhile walk led by Marla McLeod, as curator and artist, added greatly to my awareness of the art on Brister’s Hill. I had already posted based on a solo walk and online research, but Marla shaped my vision for this sequel. Here are photos from her Curator Talk*, plus my promised focus on three artists not shown in the first post: Ekua Holmes, Perla Mabel, and Anthony Peyton Young.

Art Ramble in Brister’s Hill, Walden Woods, Weaving an Address  

After one walk along Art Ramble on Brister’s Hill, I have many photos and much yet to discover about the compelling art and history here. This post, with quotes and links to resources, should serve as a starter for everything I hope to share about Weaving an Address in the months ahead!